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Scan here to visit our website! AIRF RCE February 23, 2017 Marking a dark day in history CPL Max Bree A WHITE flag and Union Jack accompanied Britain’s LTGEN Arthur Percival as he was escorted through Japanese lines to sign the surrender of Singapore’s Commonwealth forces on February 15, 1942. Seventy-five years on, flags of the Australian services were raised over the Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial in Ballarat to mark a dark day in Commonwealth military history. Veterans of the fighting were present as hundreds of people gathered to remember the disastrous fall of Singapore, considered at the time to be a bastion of British imperial power. MAJGEN Simone Wilkie, whose grandfather was captured when Singapore fell, delivered the call to remembrance. “It took just 10 weeks for three Japanese divisions to conquer Malaya. There were weeks of retreat, confusion and fear, punctuated by local victories and acts of astonishing bravery,” she said. By the end of January 1942, the last retreating Commonwealth troops crossed the causeway out of Singapore. An artillery barrage and Japanese landings followed on February 8. “The water supply began to give out and the civilian population suffered terrible causalities. LTGEN Percival had no option but to surrender,” MAJGEN Wilkie said. About 80,000 Commonwealth troops became prisoners of war, joining 50,000 taken in Malaya. This included about 15,000 Australians. Delivering the commemorative address, Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove said Singapore was supposed to be “the heart of British naval power in Asia, the guarantor of Australia’s security”. “Suddenly and sharply Australia realised our survival was now at stake. Britain was no longer in a position to defend its or Australia’s interests in Asia,” he said. Australian POWs were forced to work as slave labour on places such as the Thai-Burma Railway and Sandakan airfield. “Tortured, degraded, starved and beaten. Marched and worked to the brink of exhaustion, to the edge of death and beyond,” the GovernorGeneral said. “But there was a form of slow-burn courage, of daily sacrifice and determination not to give in, and not to despair.” Thousands of Australian troops captured with the fall of Singapore would never see home again. “We will never forget those who endured severe hardship to give us the privilege of living in peace. We will never forget those who sacrificed their lives for the sake of our freedom,” MAJGEN Wilkie said.  Remembering the Bangka Island massacre – next edition CPL Max Bree JAPANESE bombs exploding on a Singapore airfield signalled the start of the war for then 18-year-old airman Allan Deed. “We were attacked about the same time as Pearl Harbor. We didn’t realise the war had started. It was rather confusing to me,” he said. Mr Deed was part of No. 21 Squadron and drove a crash tender supporting Australian aircraft defending Singapore and Malaya. “There were obviously not enough aircraft. We took over a few old Wirraways then we got Brewster Buffaloes,” he said. “The trouble was these had a less powerful motor than a newer model. “By the time they loaded them up with .50 cannons and a bit of armour plating, they were struggling to get off the ground. Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Kaye Baird after unveiling the statue in the Garden of the Grieving Mother. Photo: CPL Max Bree MAKE YOUR MONEY GO FURTHER OR One house ‘A sadness that never really goes away’ AN elderly woman made of bronze stares downward, appearing forlorn in a hat and coat. Her weathered hands clutch a framed picture of her son, who perished on a foreign battlefield. The statue, in Ballarat’s Gar- den of the Grieving Mother, was unveiled by Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and CPL Cam Baird’s mother, Kaye, on February 15. It provides a moving contrast to Ballarat’s Arch of Victory, located nearby. Mrs Baird said it represented “a sadness that never really goes away”. “Every day is a reminder of the great love a mother has for a child. You never want it to happen but with war the boys go away, they fight for their country and you keep your fingers crossed they’ll come safely home. When it doesn’t happen, that’s the reality of war.” CPL Baird left behind his mother and father Doug when he was killed in Afghanistan on June 22, 2013, in an action that earned him a Victoria Cross. “It’s so real. My picture of a mother in the 1920s or ’30s is exactly that,” Mr Baird said. “An older lady in a three- quarter dress hugging a picture of her son. It’s a very powerful statue. It means so much to so many.” Mrs Baird said parents of personnel deployed today should keep a positive outlook. “Just be proud of them. They’re doing what they want to do. They’re doing what they think is necessary to keep our nation free of terrorism.” Our Defence Specialists can help you develop a strategy unique to your circumstances, providing advice on: Two or Three houses • Home Ownership • Investment properties • DHOAS and other entitlements • Government Grants • Loan Structures • Ownership of assets • Taxation • Maximising cashflow Tax Returns & advice BOOK NOW FOR A FREE CONSULTATION TO DISCUSS YOUR OPTIONS “So we had to switch them back to .303 guns and throw most of the armour plating out. But they were still no match for the [Japanese] Zeros.” The initial surge of Japanese troops coming down the Malay Peninsula didn’t concern Mr Deed at first. “We knew they were coming down but at 18 you don’t worry too much at all. You think you’re invincible,” he said. “We were worried when they got down and were ready to cross the causeway. It was almost continuous bombing.” By then it was becoming difficult for aircraft to operate, so a decision was made to move Mr Deed and his mates off Singapore. “They got us up early one morning, took all the aircraft off and we went across to Palembang,” he said. News 9 WWII veteran Allan Deed at the Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial in Ballarat. He was with 21SQN in Singapore just before it fell 75 years ago. Photo: CPL Max Bree From invincible to lucky There they continued operating until heavy aircraft losses, and a nearby Japanese landing, forced their evacuation. “I think there were about five Lockheed Hudsons left. They packed up one day, took their maintenance crews and took off. They told the rest of us to more or less make our own way back,” he said. Mr Deed and most of the remaining airmen eventually escaped after commandeering an old freighter. “We were lucky we didn’t get knocked getting through,” he said. Looking back, Mr Deed said it was somewhat obvious to see Singapore’s fall coming. “By the time it fell, it wasn’t a surprise but they did tell us it was impregnable. They forgot about the fact you could come down the peninsula. They thought an enemy was going to come in by boat.” With over 34 years experience in assisting Defence Force Personnel, we can help you with: Home Loans Property investment Home Ownership Spectrum is a Licensed Real Estate Agent, Registered Tax Agent & Accredited Mortgage Consultant. Australian Credit Licence No 476980 1300 784 246 or visit www.spect.com.au   PAGE FOR TIPS, ARTICLES AND TO SEE WHEN WE ARE VISITING YOUR AREA NEXT spectrumfinancialsolutions VISIT OUR FACEBOOK